Digitized  by  tfie  Internet  Archive 

in  2010  witli  funding  from 

CARL!:  Consortium  of  Academic  and  Research  Libraries  in  Illinois 


http://www.archive.org/details/inmemoriamwilliaOOIawr 


IN   MEMORIAM 
William  Frederick  Poole 

BORN  DECEMBER  24,  1821 
DIED  MARCH   I,   1804 


Chicago  Literary  Club 

1894 


THIS  Memorial  of  our  late  fellow  mem- 
ber and  ex-president,  William  Fred- 
erick Poole,  was  read  at  the  meeting  of  the 
Club,  on  Monday  evening.  May  21,  1894,  and 
ordered  printed  and  copies  sent  to  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Club. 

Frederick  W.  Gookin, 

Recording  Secretary. 


WILLIAM  FREDERICK  POOLE,^LL.D. 

DR.  WILLIAM  FREDERICK  POOLE 
was  born  in  Salem,  Mass.,  on  the  24th 
day  of  December,  1821.  He  was  of  Puritan 
ancestry,  a  descendant,  in  the  eighth  genera- 
tion, from  John  Poole,  who  emigrated  from 
England  to  Cambridge,  Mass.,  in  1632,  his 
name  being  found  (with  those  of  Thomas 
Dudley,  Symon  Bradstreet  and  five  others) 
among  the  first  settlers  of  that  place,  then 
called  "  Newtown."  John  Poole  was  granted 
land  in  Reading  and  was  probably  the 
wealthiest  of  the  early  settlers  there.  He 
lived  in  what  is  now  known  as  Wakefield,  on 
the  site  of  the  great  rattan  factory  now  there 
located.  His  son.  Captain  Jonathan  Poole, 
captain  of  the  Reading  Military  Company, 
was  distinguished  in  King  Philip's  Indian 
War  and  was  president  of  a  council  of  war 
in  1675-6.  He  was  selectman,  justice  of  the 
peace  and  representative. 

The  father  of  William  F.  Poole  was  Ward 
Poole    (a   descendant   of   Captain   Jonathan 


Poole  of  Reading),  a  wool  merchant  of  Salem, 
Mass.,  who  resided  in  that  part  of  Salem  which 
subsequently  became  part  of  Danvers,  then 
South  Danvers,  and  finally  Peabody.  The 
family  homestead,  in  which  William  F.  Poole 
was  born,  still  stands  on  Main  Street  in  Pea- 
body,  not  far  from  the  boundary  line  of 
Salem.  The  mother  of  William  F.  Poole 
was  Eliza  Wilder,  daughter  of  Abel  Wilder 
of  Keene,  N.  H.  William  F.  was  the  second 
son  of  a  family  of  six  sons  and  one  daughter. 
He  attended  the  common  school  of  his  native 
town  until  twelve  years  of  age,  when  he  went 
to  Keene,  N.  H.  Before  leaving  school  he 
had  acquired  a  good  knowledge  of  English 
branches,  and  some  of  Latin  and  advanced 
mathematics, — the  latter  acquired  by  study 
outside  of  school  hours.  During  the  year 
in  which  he  remained  in  Keene  his  father 
removed  to  a  farm  at  Worcester,  Mass.,  and 
he  there  engaged  for  a  year  in  the  work  of 
farming. 

When  about  seventeen  years  of  age,  his 
mother,  believing  in  his  capacity  for  attain- 
ments of  a  high  order,  resolved  that  he  should 
receive  a  liberal  education,  and  in  the  fall  of 


1839  he  entered  Leicester  Academy  for  the 
purpose  of  preparing  for  college  Here  he 
was  later  an  assistant  teacher,  and  in  1842 
he  entered  the  freshman  class  at  Yale  College. 
His  studies  were,  however,  interrupted  dur- 
ing his  first  year  from  financial  causes,  and 
he  was  obliged  to  leave  college  and  engage 
in  teaching  in  order  to  secure  the  means  to 
continue  his  studies. 

After  three  years  spent  in  teaching  he 
returned  to  college,  entering  the  sophomore 
class  in  1846,  and  graduating  with  honors  in 
1849.  Among  his  classmates  and  life-long 
friends  were  President  Timothy  Dwight  of 
Yale  College,  and  President  Franklin  W.  Fisk 
of  the  Chicago  Theological  Seminary. 

Dr,  Poole  was  married  in  1854  to  Miss 
Fanny  M.  Gleason,  who  survives  him.  His 
son,  William  Frederick,  was  graduated  at 
Yale  in  the  class  of  1891. 

In  June,  1847,  during  the  latter  part  of  his 
sophomore  year,  he  accepted  the  position 
of  assistant  librarian  of  the  Society  of 
**Brothers-in-Unity,"  which  had  a  library  of 
about  ten  thousand  volumes.  By  this  his  life 
profession   was   determined.     Shortly  there- 


after  he  began  the  preparation  of  an  index  to 
reviews  and  periodicals  in  the  library  to  aid 
the  students  in  the  preparation  of  their  essays 
and  exercises.  When  he  first  entered  the 
library,  and  before  the  beginning  of  his  work 
on  the  index,  the  young  librarian,  after  the 
announcement  of  topics  for  essays,  which  was 
made  in  chapel,  was  beset  by  the  students 
with  requests  for  references  to  required 
authorities,  and  he  soon  began  the  practice 
of  making  out  lists  of  references  to  all  acces- 
sible articles  relating  to  the  topics  given, 
posting  the  same  in  the  library  as  soon  as 
possible  after  the  topics  were  announced. 
This  involved  considerable  labor,  but  it  made 
clear  the  value  and  utility  of  a  general  index 
to  the  periodicals,  the  preparation  of  which 
was  then  begun.  Thus  was  laid,  in  a  modest 
way,  the  foundation  for  that  monumental 
work,  "  Poole's  Index  to  Periodical  Liter- 
ature." Thus,  also,  was  shown  at  the  begin- 
ning of  his  career  one  characteristic  which 
distinguished  Dr.  Poole  throughout  his  life, 
namely, — a  limitless  devotion  and  self  sacri- 
fice in  opening  to  others  the  sources  of 
knowledge  and  the  riches  of  literature.     The 


index  to  the  periodicals  in  the  Society  Library 
proved  of  great  value  to  the  students,  and 
the  desirability  of  printing  it  became  obvi- 
ous, and  by  arrangement  with  George  P. 
Putnam,  of  New  York,  it  was  published  in 
octavo  form,  making  a  book  of  154  pages. 
In  a  short  time  the  whole  edition  was  sold 
and  another  one  was  called  for.  The  last 
year  of  his  college  life,  as  well  as  the  year 
after  his  graduation,  was  largely  given  to  the 
preparation  of  the  second  edition  of  the 
"  Index,"  and  it  was  printed  in  an  octavo 
volume  of  531  pages  in  1853. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  in  addition  to  the 
work  required  in  his  classes,  he  did  the 
greater  part  of  the  work  on  the  first  and 
second  editions  of  the  "  Index  "  during  the 
three  last  years  of  his  college  life,  and  the 
energy  and  enthusiasm  which  he  put  into  his 
work  will  be  understood  when  it  is  stated  that 
he  was  graduated  with  honors,  and  that  his 
scholarship  was  recognized  by  his  election  to 
the  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society.  It  is  said  that 
during  the  preparation  of  the  first  edition  of 
the  "  Index,"  he  would  frequently  work 
among  the  books  in  the  library  until  an  early 


hour  in  the  morning,  and  then,  throwing  him- 
self on  a  table,  without  undressing,  he  would 
snatch  a  few  hours  of  sleep. 

In  185 1  he  entered  the  Boston  Athenaeum 
as  Assistant  Librarian,  and  in  1852  was  ap- 
pointed Librarian  of  the  Boston  Mercantile 
Library,  where  he  remained  for  four  years. 
Here  he  prepared  a  catalogue  of  the  library 
on  a  new  plan,  and  one  which  has  since  been 
widely  followed,  and  is  known  as  the  "  Dic- 
tionary Catalogue,"  or  "  title-a-line"  plan. 
In  this,  as  in  all  matters  in  life,  he  showed 
that  love  for  simple  and  direct  methods  which 
distinguished  him  in  his  profession.  In  this 
catalogue  the  authors'  names,  title  and  sub- 
jects were  arranged  in  one  alphabet,  and  each 
entry  occupied  a  single  line  only, — a  plan  the 
value  of  which  is  obvious  and  has  been  gen- 
erally recognized.  This  catalogue  was  a 
book  of  322  pages,  and  covered  about  sixteen 
thousand  volumes,  and  was  printed  in  1854, 
two  years  after  he  took  charge  of  the  library. 

In  1856  he  was  elected  Librarian  of  the 
Boston  Athenaeum,  a  position  which  he  held 
until  January,  1869.  Here,  among  associ- 
ations  most  conducive  to  literary  effort,  in 


daily  intercourse  with  the  most  brilliant  and 
cultivated  minds  of  America,  and  in  the  full- 
est development  of  his  powers,  he  accom- 
plished the  principal  part  of  the  literary  work 
on  which  his  fame  as  a  writer  and  a  historian 
rests.  He  was,  from  his  connection  with 
libraries,  all  his  life  in  relations  of  intimacy 
with  the  men  and  women  famous  in  modern 
American  literature;  but  the  period  of  his 
librarianship  of  the  Athensum  was  one  rich 
in  literary  production,  and  for  the  famous 
group  of  literary  celebrities  the  library  was  a 
common  and  familiar  meeting  place.  Artists, 
authors,  statesmen,  journalists,  and  the  cul- 
ture and  wealth  of  New  England  sought  con- 
stantly the  stores  of  literary  treasures  found 
in  the  library,  and  in  the  librarian  was  found 
a  key  to  the  storehouse.  The  librarian  sat 
in  an  alcove  surrounded  by  the  books  which 
had  formed  President  Washington's  private 
library;  from  the  library  windows  could  be 
seen  the  homes  of  the  Quincys  and  of  Pres- 
cott,  the  historian.  Beyond  the  Old  Granary 
Burying  Ground  rose  the  spire  of  Park  Street 
Church;  nearby  were  the  State  House,  Boston 
Common,  and  Ticknor  &  Fields'  famous  pub- 


lishing  house.  Here  he  met  and  was  in 
familiar  intercourse  with  men  whose  names 
are  famous  in  American  literature:  Long- 
fellow, Emerson,  Lowell,  Holmes,  Ticknor, 
Charles  Francis  Adams  the  elder,  Francis 
Parkman,  Samuel  Eliot,  and  James  T.  Field 
were  frequent  visitors.  These  were  the  days 
of  the  "Autocrat"  and  the  "Professor."  It 
was  the  golden  age  of  the  ''Atlantic  Monthly," 
and  its  younger  contributors,  Henry  James, 
Jr.,  T.  B.  Aldrich,  H.  E.  Scudder,  W.  D. 
Howells,  F.  J.  Stimpson  and  others  fre- 
quented the  library  and  often  sought  the  aid 
of  the  librarian.  The  coterie  of  writers  for 
the  "North  American  Review"  were  fre- 
quently found  at  the  library  and  welcomed 
the  librarian  among  them.  The  library  was 
a  common  meeting  place  of  Ralph  Waldo 
Emerson,  Bronson  Alcott,  and  his  daughter, 
Louisa  M.  Alcott,  the  Hoar  Brothers,  Judge 
and  Senator,  and  others  of  the  Concord  group. 
At  the  long  table  in  the  library  Hildreth 
wrote  most  of  his  "History  of  the  United 
States;"  and  the  younger  Adamses,  James 
Schouler  and  Henry  Cabot  Lodge,  as  young 
men,   were   then     pursuing    their   historical 


studies,  and  frequently  sought  the  assistance 
of  the  Hbrarian. 

The  more  important  historical  works  of 
Dr.  Poole,  published  during  this  period  of 
his  life,  were:  "The  Popham  Colony,"  a 
discussion  of  its  historical  claims,  with  a  Bib- 
liography of  the  subject,  published  in  1866; 
a  reprint  of  "The  Wonder-Working  Provi- 
dence of  Zion's  Saviour  in  New  England," 
with  an  historical  introduction  by  Dr.  Poole, 
published  in  1867;  **The  Popham  Colony," 
printed  in  the  "  North  American  Review," 
October,  1868  ;  "Anne  Bradstreet,  the  Early 
New  England  Poetess/'  in  the  "  North  Amer- 
ican Review, '^  1868;  and  "Cotton  Mather 
and  Salem  Witchcraft,"  in  the  "  North  Amer- 
ican Review"  for  April,  1869. 

In  January,  1869,  Dr.  Poole  resigned  from 
the  position  of  librarian  of  the  Athenaeum  and 
became  a  professional  expert  for  the  organi- 
zation of  libraries.  Among  those  that  he 
had  under  his  charge  at  this  time  were  the 
Bronson  Library,  at  Waterbury,  Conn.;  the 
Athenaeum,  at  St.  Johnsbury,  Vt.;  the  Naval 
Academy  Library,  at  Annapolis,  Md. ;  and 
the  Public  Libraries  of  Newton,  Mass.,  East- 


hampton,  Mass.,  and  Cincinnati,  Ohio.  His 
connection  with  the  Cincinnati  PubHc  Library, 
as  organizer  and  librarian,  continued  from 
November,  1869,  to  January,  1874,  and  during 
this  time  he  selected  the  books  for  and  put 
into  operation  the  Indianapolis  Public  Library. 
The  building  for  the  Cincinnati  Public  Library 
was  begun  a  short  time  before  he  went  to  Cin- 
cinnati, and  the  building  was  occupied  in  1870. 
The  library  contained  about  twenty-two 
thousand  volumes  at  that  time,  and  had 
grown  when  he  left  it,  in  1874,  to  about  sixty 
thousand  volumes.  When  he  assumed  charge 
of  the  library  a  new  catalogue  was  begun, 
and  this  was  finished  in  187 1,  making  a  book 
of  656  pages.  His  work  in  the  reorganiza- 
tion and  development  of  this  library,  as  well 
as  in  the  preparation  of  its  magnificent  cata- 
logue, was  such  as  to  command  the  respect 
and  admiration  of  all  familiar  with  the  facts. 
It  was  while  in  Cincinnati  that  Dr.  Poole's 
attention  was  called  to  Dr.  Manasseh  Cutler 
and  his  services  in  furthering  the  develop- 
ment and  settlement  of  the  Northwest  Ter- 
ritory, and  this  led  to  the  preparation  of  his 
article  entitled  "The  Ordinance  of  1787  and 


Dr.  Manasseh  Cutler  as  an  Agent  in  its 
Formation,"  which  was  published  in  the 
''North  American  Review,"  for  April,  1876. 

On  the  25th  day  of  October,  1873,  Dr. 
Poole  was  elected  librarian  of  the  Chicago 
Public  Library.  It  requires  trained  skill  of 
a  high  degree  to  organize  successfully  a  great 
library.  The  Directors  were  fortunate  at  the 
beginning  in  securing  the  services  of  the 
most  eminent  librarian  in  the  United  States 
to  take  charge  of  the  library  through  the 
first  fifteen  years  of  its  organization. 

During  his  connection  with  the  Chicago 
Public  Library  he  entered  into  the  undertak- 
ing of  bringing  down  to  date  the  "Index  to 
Periodical  Literature,"  of  which  the  first  and 
second  editions  had  been  largely  prepared 
while  he  was  still  a  student  in  college.  This 
work  was  a  stupendous  one,  owing  to  the 
great  mass  of  periodical  literature  which  had 
meanwhile  been  printed,  and  the  magnitude 
of  the  undertaking  would  have  appalled  a 
man  possessing  less  force  of  will  than  Dr. 
Poole.  He  sought  and  obtained  the  co-oper- 
ation of  the  librarians  of  a  number  of  Ameri- 
can  and    English   libraries.      Every   article 


indexed  was  read  through  in  order  to  deter- 
mine accurately  the  subject  treated.  In  his 
work  on  the  *'  Index  "  he  was  assisted  by  Mr. 
William  I,  Fletcher,  of  Amherst  College,  as  as- 
sociate editor;  but  Dr.  Poole  himself  examined 
and  corrected  the  proof  sheets  of  every  page 
of  the  "  Index."  The  "Index"  was  printed 
in  a  royal  octavo  volume  of  1469  pages,  a 
book  equalling  in  size  Webster's  Unabridged 
Dictionary,  and  one  which  now  stands  beside 
the  latter  at  the  hand  of  every  student  or 
scholar.  The  work  of  indexing  was  con- 
tinued to  cover  the  contents  of  periodicals  as 
they  appeared  after  the  third  edition  of  the 
"Index"  was  printed,  and  in  1888  the  first 
"Five  Year  Supplement,"  of  496  pages,  was 
published  by  Dr.  Poole.  A  second  supple- 
ment, edited  by  Mr.  William  I.  Fletcher,  ap- 
peared in  1893. 

In  1887  the  bequest  of  Walter  L.  Newberry 
for  the  founding  of  a  great  library  in  Chicago 
became  available,  and  in  August  of  that 
year  Dr.  Poole  was  called  upon  to  undertake 
the  formation  of  the  Newberry  Library.  The 
bequest  of  Mr.  Newberry  afforded  a  founda- 
tion of  the  munificent  sum  of  three  million 


dollars,  and  Dr.  Poole  decided,  with  the  con- 
sent of  the  trustees,  that  the  library  should 
be  primarily  a  scholar's  reference  library. 
This  plan  was  strictly  adhered  to  during  the 
remainder  of  his  incumbency,  which  ended 
with  his  life,  and  the  library  under  his  man- 
agement soon  rivalled  the  older  libraries  of 
the  country,  and  in  some  departments  became 
more  complete  than  any  other  in  America. 

From  the  time  of  his  earliest  library  work, 
Dr.  Poole  was  an  earnest  student  of  library 
economy  and  administration,  and  as  his  life 
covered  practically  the  period  in  which  the 
occupation  of  librarian  grew  into  a  recognized 
profession,  the  methods  suggested  and  put 
into  practice  by  him  have  been  generally 
adopted  and  followed.  He  contributed  many 
papers  on  the  subject  of  library  economy, 
and  his  writings  on  the  subject  of  library 
architecture  are  widely  known.  His  paper 
on  the  "  Organization  and  Management  of 
Public  Libraries  "  was  printed  by  the  govern- 
ment in  the  "Report  on  Public  Libraries," 
issued  by  the  Bureau  of  Education  in  1876, 
and  one  entitled  "  The  Public  I^ibrary  of  Our 
Time,"  appeared  in  the  "  Library  Journal " 


in  1888.  His  plans  are  described  and  com- 
mended in  the  article  on  library  construction 
in  the  Encyclopedia  Britannica,  and  have 
been  adopted  in  the  new  building  for  the 
Newberry  Library  in  Chicago. 

In  the  promotion  of  associated  work  among 
librarians,  by  which  the  cause  of  libraries  has 
been  greatly  assisted,  Dr.  Poole  has  taken  a 
prominent  part.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
first  library  conference,  held  in  New  York 
in  September,  1853.  At  this  meeting  the 
"Jewett"  rules  for  cataloguing  libraries 
were  for  the  first  time  considered,  and  the 
exchange  of  catalogues  among  libraries  initi- 
ated. He  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
American  Library  Association,  which  was 
organized  at  Philadelphia  in  1876;  was  Vice- 
President  of  the  same  1876-84,  and  President 
1885-87;  and  was  one  of  the  American  repre- 
sentatives at  the  International  Conference  of 
Librarians,  held  in  London  in  October,  1877. 
He  was  Vice-President  of  this  conference,  and 
delivered  an  address  which  was  received  with 
approval  by  the  foreign  press.  He  was  also 
President  of  the  Western  Library  Association 
from  1 88 1  to  1884. 

18 


Dr.  Poole's  historical  work  began  with  his 
paper  on  the  "  Popham  Colony,"  which  was 
published  in  Boston  in  1866.  This  paper 
was  a  criticism,  somewhat  caustic  in  its  char- 
acter, upon  an  address  by  Prof.  J.  W.  Patter- 
son, delivered  at  Popham,  Maine,  in  1865,  on 
the  occasion  of  the  anniversary  of  its  first 
settlement.  In  a  memorial  volume  published 
in  1862,  and  in  Dr.  Patterson's  address,  claims 
were  made  that  the  settlement  of  Maine  by 
the  Popham  Colony  was  earlier  than  that  of 
Massachusetts;  and  in  his  paper  Dr.  Poole 
refuted  the  claims  of  the  '•  Pophamites " 
regarding  the  time  of  settlement,  and  the 
character  of  the  colonists,  holding  that  the 
latter  were  not  of  a  kind  to  be  proud  of. 
This  paper  led  to  an  extended  controversy, 
in  which  the  Rev.  Edward  Ballard,  D.  D., 
the  author  of  the  memorial  volume,  and  Mr, 
Frederick  Kidder,  took  part.  Dr.  Poole's 
final  paper  in  the  controversy  was  printed  in 
the  "Boston  Advertiser"  of  May  31,  1866. 
Two  years  later  he  published  an  article  on 
the  same  subject  in  the  "  North  American 
Review"  for  October,  1868. 

His  researches  and  papers  on  the  subject 
19 


of  Cotton  Mather  and  witchcraft  in  Salem 
were  largely  instrumental  in  giving  him  dis- 
tinction as  an  historical  writer  and  critic. 
His  first  paper  on  this  subject  was  called  out 
by  the  appearance  of  the  "  Mather  Papers  " 
in  the  collections  of  the  Massachusetts  His- 
torical Society,  Volume  VHI,  Fourth  Series. 
This  paper  was  printed  under  the  title  *'  The 
Mather  Papers:  Cotton  Mather  and  Salem 
Witchcraft,"  at  Boston  in  1868.  In  1831 
Mr.  Charles  W.  Upham  had  printed  his  lec- 
tures on  Salem  witchcraft,  in  which  Cotton 
Mather  was  charged  with  being  the  principal 
instigator  of  the  proceedings  against  those 
accused  of  witchcraft.  These  charges  had 
been  repeated  in  Quincy's  "  History  of  Har- 
vard University,"  in  Peabody's  "  Life  of 
Cotton  Mather,"  and  by  Mr.  Bancroft  and 
other  historical  writers,  and  had  been  copied 
into  all  of  the  popular  and  school  histories. 
He  pointed  out  the  evidence  found  in  the 
Cotton  Mather  papers  as  establishing  a  con- 
trary view,  and  vigorously  defended  Mather 
and  his  fellow  Puritans.  Mr.  Upham  an- 
swered the  paper  and  the  discussion  created 
great   interest  among  all   students  of   New 


England  history.  James  Russell  Lowell, 
then  editor  of  the  "  North  American  Review," 
shortly  after  wrote  to  Dr.  Poole,  saying:  "I 
know  very  well  that  you  have  not  said  all 
you  know  about  witchcraft,  and  I  want  you 
to  write  an  article  for  the  '  North  American.'  " 
His  second  paper  on  the  subject  was  printed 
in  the  "  North  American  Review  "  for  April, 
1869.  The  views  expressed  by  him  on  this 
subject  have  been  generally  accepted  by  later 
historians.  His  vigorous  defense  of  the  char- 
acter of  the  Puritan  leaders  of  the  New  Eng- 
land Colony,  of  whom  Mr.  Quincy  has  said, 
"The  guilt  of  the  excesses  and  horrors  con- 
sequent on  that  excitement  rests,  and  ought 
to  rest,  heavily  upon  the  leading  divines  and 
politicians  of  the  Colony  at  that  period,"  was 
received  with  hearty  approval,  and  the  unerr- 
ing logic  of  these  papers,  with  their  clear, 
incisive  and  brilliant  style,  established  his 
reputation  as  an  historical  writer.  He  made 
a  further  contribution  to  the  history  of  witch- 
craft in  "  The  Witchcraft  Delusion  of  1692,  by 
Gov.  Thomas  Hutchinson,  from  an  unpub- 
lished manuscript;  with  notes  by  William  F. 
Poole,"  which  was   published   in  the  "New 


England  Historical  and  Genealogical  Reg- 
ister" for  October,  1870,  and  he  prepared  the 
chapter  on  "Withcraft  in  Boston"  for  "Win- 
sor's  Memorial  History  of  Boston,"  Volume  H. 

Another  important  historical  paper  pre- 
pared by  him  was  the  introduction  of  139 
pages  to  Johnson's  "Wonder  Working  Provi- 
dence," which  was  reprinted  in  1867.  His 
paper  on  ''Anti-Slavery  Opinions  Before 
1800,"  published  at  Cincinnati  in  1872,  con- 
tained the  results  of  researches  in  an  unex- 
plored field.  His  studies  in  Western  history 
resulted  in  the  chapter  entitled  "  The  West, 
1763-83,"  in  "Winsor's  Narrative  and  Criti- 
cal History  of  America,"  vol.  vi,  1888,  and  a 
paper  entitled  "  The  Early  Northwest ;  the 
President's  Address,  December  26^  1888,"  in 
the  "  Papers  of  the  American  Historical  Asso- 
ciation," vol.  in.  His  article  on  the  ordinance 
of  1787  has  attracted  wide  attention  by  rea- 
son of  the  light  it  throws  on  an  important 
historical  question,  namely,  the  origin  of  the 
article  in  that  ordinance  by  which  slavery  was 
prohibited  in  the  Northwestern  Territory,  and 
the  great  States  afterwards  therein  founded 
remained  free  from  the  curse  of  slavery. 

In  1874-5,  at  Chicago,  he  edited  a  literary 


\ 


monthly  called  "The  Owl."  This  was  a  pre- 
decessor of  "The  Dial,"  to  which  he  was 
a  constant  contributor. 

Dr.  Poole  was  an  active  member  of  the 
American  Historical  Association,  and  he  was 
its  President  in  1887-88.  He  was  also  a 
member  of  the  American  Antiquarian  So- 
ciety, the  New-England  Historic  Genealogi- 
cal Society,  and  the  Essex  Institute,  all  of 
Massachusetts.  He  was  a  corresponding 
member  of  the  Historical  Societies  of  Massa- 
chusetts, New  York,  Pennsylvania,  Maryland, 
Wisconsin  and  other  States. 

Dr.  Poole  was  a  member  of  this  Club  from 
its  beginning.  He  was  influential  in  shaping 
its  original  policy;  and  many  of  his  best  liter- 
ary productions  were  first  announced  in  its 
scheme  of  literary  exercises.  No  member 
has  given  to  it  more  valuable  contributions. 
He  was  elected  President  in  1887. 

His  powers  were  mature,  and  his  reputa- 
tion was  established  when  he  first  came  among 
us,  twenty  years  ago;  and  by  his  studious 
scholarly  habits,  his  reputation  was  increased 
every  remaining  year  of  his  life.  His  char- 
acter was  of  the  Puritan  type,  tempered  by 
23 


two  hundred  and  fifty  years  of  New  England 
civilization.  He  loved  to  commemorate  the 
virtues  of  his  Puritan  ancestors,  to  whose 
memory  he  was  as  loyal  as  he  was  to  his  liv- 
ing friends;  but  his  life  was  a  better  exempli- 
fication of  Puritan  virtues  than  anything  ever 
written  about  them. 

He  was  a  sincere,  genuine  man,  whom 
neither  self-interest  nor  affection  could  swerve 
from  the  line  of  perfect  integrity.  Writing 
of  him  in  "The  Dial,"  William  Morton  Payne 
says: 

"The  bibliographer  and  the  historical  student, 
combined  in  William  Frederick  Poole,  were  known 
to  the  world ;  something  better  than  these,  the  man 
himself,  was  known  to  his  friends.  The  brusque- 
ness  of  his  manner,  at  first,  a  little  repellant  to 
those  who  came  in  contact  with  him,  was  soon  seen 
to  be  but  the  outward  expression  of  a  mental  habit 
of  the  rarest  sincerity.  And  upon  those  who  had 
the  privilege  of  his  intimacy  was  made  the  impres- 
sion, dominant  above  all  others,  of  his  absolute 
integrity,  intellectual  and  moral.  They  realized 
that  here  was  a  man  who  simply  could  not  think  one 
thing  and  say  another,  or  swerve  by  so  much  as  a 
finger's  breadth  from  what  he  believed  to  be  the 
right  course,  were  the  matter  in  question  great  or 
small.  Such  men  are  none  too  common  in  the 
world,  and  when  one  of  them  leaves  it,  his  place, 
34 


for  those  who  have  really  known  him,  is  not  likely 
to  be  filled  again." 

Dr.  Poole  was  preeminent  in  his  profession. 
"  In  my  opinion,"  says  Mr.  B.  F.  Stevens,  of 
London,  "  Dr.  Poole  was  the  most  learned 
and  the  most  practical  librarian  in  the  United 
States."  In  the  service  of  two  great  libraries 
he  gave  to  Chicago  the  fruits  of  his  ripe 
experience.  The  value  of  his  work  in  these 
libraries  cannot  be  overstated.  Thirty-five 
public  libraries  in  Illinois,  and  many  others 
in  the  adjoining  States,  in  the  last  twenty 
years,  have  been  helped  by  his  advice,  assist- 
ance and  influence. 

He  was  a  great  teacher.  To  all  who  ap- 
proached him,  with  serious  literary  purposes, 
he  gave  information  freely  and  in  a  spirit 
that  inspired  others  with  his  own  enthusiasm 
for  books. 

He  was  widely  admired,  at  home  and 
abroad,  for  his  exceptional  scholarship  and 
knowledge.  To  be  known  as  his  friend,  in 
any  of  the  great  libraries  of  Europe,  was  the 
best  of  introductions.  If  he  was  a  man  to  be 
admired  for  his  attainments,  still  more  was 
he  to  be  loved  for  his  character,  which  was 
formed  for  friendship.     Impatient  of  shallow 

*5 


and  trifling  natures,  it  was  not  easy  for  all  to 
approach  him  on  familiar  terms;  but  those 
once  admitted  to  his  friendship,  he  held  in  a 
life-long  intimacy. 

In  this  Club,  to  which  he  was  devotedly 
attached,  he  felt  that  he  was  among  his 
friends,  to  whom  he  gave  without  measure 
and  without  reserve  his  entire  confidence  with 
unfaltering  loyalty. 

His  personality  still  seems  to  pervade  this 
place  and  all  the  places  where  he  was  best 
known,  so  that  one  thinks  of  him,  and  will  long 
continue  to  think  of  him,  as  of  a  friend  absent 
on  a  journey.  When  death  shall  have  extin- 
guished these  personal  memories  and  associa- 
tions, he  will  continue  to  be  known,  as  he 
rightfully  expected  finally  to  be  known,  by 
the  writings  which  he  published.  He  con- 
structed while  living  the  monument  that  will 
best  preserve  his  memory. 

Daniel  L.  Shorey, 
Edward  G.  Mason, 
James  L,  High, 
William  Eliot  Furness, 
John  G.  Shortall, 

Committee. 
26 


Appendix 


LIST  OF  WORKS  BY 
WILLIAM   FREDERICK    POOLE 


AN  ALPHABETICAL  INDEX  TO  SUBJECTS 
TREATED  IN  THE  REVIEWS  AND 
OTHER  PERIODICALS,  to  which  no  Indices 
have  been  published.  Prepared  for  the  Library 
of  the  Brothers-in-Unity,  Yale  College, 

80;  pp.  iv,  154.     New  York,  George  P.  Put- 
nam, 1848. 

AN  INDEX  TO  PERIODICAL  LITERATURE. 

80;  pp.  X,  521.    New  York,  Charles  B.  Norton, 
1853. 
AN  INDEX  TO  PERIODICAL  LITERATURE. 

Third  edition,  brought  down  to  January,  1882, 
with  the  assistance  of  William  L  Fletcher,  Assis- 
tant Librarian  of  the  Watkinson  Library,  Hart- 
ford, Conn.,  and  the  co-operation  of  the  American 
Library  Association  and  the  Library  Association 
of  the  United  Kingdom. 

Royal  80;  pp.  xxvii,  1442.     Boston,  James  R. 

Osgood  &  Co.,  1882. 

—THE  SAME. 

In  two  volumes,  Royal  80.   Boston,  Houghton, 
Mifflin  &  Co. 

29 


POOLE'S  INDEX  TO  PERIODICAL  LIT- 
ERATURE;   THE   FIRST   SUPPLEMENT, 

from  January  i,  1882,  to  January  i,  1887,  by 
William  Frederick  Poole,  LL.D.,  Librarian  of 
the  Newberry  Library,  Chicago,  and  William  I. 
Fletcher,  A.M.,  Librarian  of  Amherst  College. 

Royal  80;  pp.  xiii,  483.     Boston,  Houghton, 

Mifflin  &  Co.,  1888. 

DICTIONARIES  IN  THE  BOSTON  MER- 
CANTILE LIBRARY  AND  BOSTON 
ATHEN/EUM. 

80;  pp.  8.    Springfield,  Mass.,  G.  &  C.  Mer- 
riam,  1856. 

WEBSTERIAN  ORTHOGRAPHY;      A  REPLY 
TO  Dr,  Noah  Webster's  Caluminators. 
80;  pp.  23.     Boston,  Crocker  and   Brewster, 
1857. 

THE      ORTHOGRAPHICAL      HOBGOBLIN. 

By  Philorthos  [W.  F.  Poole]. 

80;  pp.  14.     Springfield,  Mass.,  G.  &  C.  Mer- 
riam,  1859. 

THE    POPHAM    COLONY:     A  DISCUSSION  OF 

ITS  Historical  Claims,  with  a  Bibliography 

OF  THE  Subject. 

Comprising: 

I.  The  Last  Popham  Address,  by  William  Fred- 
erick Poole,  reprinted  from  the  Boston  Daily 
Advertiser,  April  11,   1866,  being  a  notice  of 


the  address  of  James  W,    Patterson,   at  the 
258th  Popham  Anniversary,  August  29,  1865. 

2.  "The  Last  Popham  Address,"  by  Edward 
Ballard,  reprinted  from  the  Boston  Daily  Ad- 
vertiser, April  21,  1866,  being  a  reply  to  the 
above  notice. 

3.  "The  Last  Popham  Address,"  by  "Orient," 
reprinted  from  the  Portland  Advertiser,  April 
26,  1866. 

4.  Popham  Again  and  Finally,  by  William  Fred- 
erick Poole,  reprinted  from  the  Boston  Daily 
Advertiser,  May  31,  1866,  being  a  rejoinder. 

5.  The  Popham  Colony,  "  Finally,"  by  Edward 
Ballard,  reprinted  from  the  Boston  Daily  Ad- 
vertiser, July  28,  1866. 

6.  A  Running  Review  of  the  "  Popham  Again 
and  Finally,"  by  Frederick  Kidder,  reprinted 
from  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  July  28,  1866. 

7.  Bibliography  of  the  Popham  Colony,  by  Wil- 
liam Frederick  Poole. 

8";  pp.  72.     Boston,  Wiggin  and  Lunt,  1866. 
Edition  300  copies. 

THE  WONDER-WORKING  PROVIDENCE 
OF  SION'S  SAVIOUR  IN  NEW  ENG- 
LAND. By  Captain  Edward  Johnson,  of 
WoBURN,  Massachusetts  Bay.  London,  1654. 
Reprinted  with  an  Historical  Introduc- 
tion (pp.  139),  BY  William  Frederick  Poole, 
AND  AN  Index  (pp.  23);  and  Genealogy  of 
the  Descendants  of  Captain  Edward  John- 


SON,  BY  John  Alonzo  Boutelle  (pp.  15), 

40 ;  pp.  419.      Andover,  Mass.,   Warren   F. 
Draper,  1867. 

Edition,  10  copies  drawing  paper,  50  copies 
large  paper,  250  copies  small  paper. 

ANNE   BRADSTREET,  THE    EARLY   NEW 
ENGLAND  POETESS. 

North  American  Review,  1868.     Vol.  106,  pp. 
330-334- 
THE  POPHAM  COLONY. 

North  American  Review,  October,  1868.     Vol. 

107,  pp.  663-674. 

THE    MATHER    PAPERS;     COTTON  MATHER 

AND  Salem  Witchcraft. 
Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  October  28,  1868. 

—THE  SAME. 

120;  pp  23.     Privately  printed;  Boston,  1868. 
Edition  100  copies. 

COTTON    MATHER  AND    SALEM  WITCH- 
CRAFT. 

North  American  Review,   April,    1869.     Vol. 

108,  pp.  337-397- 

—THE  SAME. 

80 ;  pp.63.     Privately  printed;  Boston,  1869. 
Edition  100  copies. 

COTTON    MATHER    AND    WITCHCRAFT; 

Two  Notices  of  Mr.  Upham  his  Reply. 

32 


From  Christian  Era,  Boston,  April  28,  1870, 
and  Watchman  and  Reflector,  Boston,  May  5, 
1870. 

Sq.  160;  pp.  30.    Boston,  T.  R.  Marvin  &  Son; 

London,  Henry  Stevens,  May,  1870. 

THE  WITCHCRAFT  DELUSION  OF  169a. 
By  Governor  Thomas  Hutchinson,  From  an 
unpublished  MS.  (an  early  draft  of  his  History 
of  Massachusetts)  in  the  Massachusetts  archives. 
With  Notes  by  William  Frederick  Poole. 
New  England  Historical  and  Genealogical  Reg- 
ister, October,  1870.     Vol.  24,  pp.  381-414. 

—THE  SAME. 

Sm.  40 ;  pp.  43.     Privately  printed.    Boston, 
1870. 

THE  TYLER-DAVIDSON  FOUNTAIN. 

8o;pp.  118.     Cincinnati,  1872. 

—THE  SAME,  Illustrated. 

Royal  40.     Cincinnati,  1872. 

ANTI-SLAVERY  OPINIONS  BEFORE  THE 
YEAR  1800.  Read  before  the  Cincinnati 
Literary  Club,  November  16,  1872.  To 
which  is  appended  a  fac  simile  Reprint  of 
Dr.  George  Buchanan's  Oration  on  the 
Moral  and  Political  Evil  of  Slavery,  de- 
livered AT  A  public  meeting  OF  THE  MARY- 
LAND Society  for  Promoting  the  Abolition 
OF  Slavery,  Baltimore,  July  4,  1791. 

33 


80 ;  pp.  82  and  20.     Cincinnati,  Robert  Clarke 
&  Co.,  1873. 

THE  ORDINANCE  OF  1787,  AND  DR. 
MANASSEH  CUTLER  AS  AN  AGENT  IN 
ITS   FORMATION. 

North  American  Review,  April,  1876.   Vol.  122, 
pp.  229-265. 

—THE  SAME. 

80 ;    pp.    38.      Cambridge,    Mass.,    Welch, 
Bigelow  &  Co.,  1876. 

THE  ORGANIZATION  AND  MANAGEMENT 
OF  PUBLIC  LIBRARIES.  In  Special  Report 
on  Public  Libraries  in  the  United  States  of  Amer- 
ica, pp.  476-504.  Washington,  Government 
Printing  Office,  1876. 

THE  CONSTRUCTION  OF  LIBRARY 
BUILDINGS.  Address  at  the  meeting  of  the 
American  Library  Association,  held  at  Washing- 
ton, D.  C,  February,  1881. 

The  Library  Journal,  April,  1881.     Vol.  6, 

pp.  69-77. 

The  American  Architect  and  Building  News, 

September  17,  1881.     Vol.  10,  p.  131. 

— THE  SAME,  with  additions.  Circular  of  In- 
formation of  the  Bureau  of  Education.  No.  i, 
1881. 

80;  pp.  26.    Washington,  Government  Print- 
ing Office,  1 88 1. 

34 


WITCHCRAFT  IN  BOSTON. 

In  Winsor's  Memorial  History  of  Boston.     Vol. 
2,  pp.  131-172.     Boston,  1881. 

REPORT  ON  THE    PROGRESS  OF  LIBRA- 
RY ARCHITECTURE,  AND  RESOLUTIONS  OF 

THE  Association  concerning  the  Building 
FOR  THE  Library  of  Congress.  Address  at 
the  meeting  of  the  American  Library  Association, 
held  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  May  24-27,  1882. 

The  Library  Journal,  July-August,  1882.    Vol. 

7,  pp.  130-136. 

—THE  SAME. 

8°;  pp.  16.     Boston  [American  Library  Asso- 
ciation], Secretary's  Office,  1882. 

REMARKS  ON  LIBRARY  CONSTRUCTION. 

To  which  is  appended  an  Examination  of  Mr.  J. 
L.  Smithmeyer's  Pamphlet  entitled,  "  Suggestions 
on  Library  Architecture,  American  and  Foreign." 

80;    pp.  34.      Chicago,  Jansen,    McClurg   & 

Co.,  1884. 

THE    PUBLIC    LIBRARY    OF    OUR    TIME. 

The  President's  Address  at  the  meeting  of  the 
American  Library  Association  held  at  Round 
Island,  N.  Y.,  August  30-September  2,  1887. 

The   Library   Journal,    September-October, 

1887,  Vol.  2,  pp.  311-320. 

—THE  SAME. 

80;  pp.  10.     Privately  printed,  1887. 

35 


THE    WEST;       FROM  THE    TREATY  OF  PEACE 

WITH  France,  1763,  to  the  Treaty  of  Peace 

WITH  England,  1783. 

In  Winsor's  Narrative  and  Critical  History  of 
America.     Vol.  6,  pp.  685-743.     Boston,  1888. 

THE    EARLY    NORTHWEST.       ADDRESS    AS 

President  of  the  American  Historical 
Association,  at  its  Fifth  Annual  Meeting, 
Washington,  D.  C,  December  26,  1888. 

Papers  of  the  American  Historical  Association. 

Vol.  3,  pp.  275-300. 

—THE  SAME. 

80;  pp.  26.     New  York,  The  Knickerbocker 
Press,  1889. 

ROOSEVELT'S  "THE  WINNING   OF   THE 
WEST." 

Atlantic  Monthly,  November  1889.     Vol.  64, 
pp.  693-700. 

THE  ORDINANCE  OF  1787;    A  REPLY. 

The  Inlander,  Ann  Arbor,  Mich.,  January,  1892, 
pp.  169-181. 

—THE  SAME. 

pp.  15.    Privately  printed.    Ann  Arbor,  1892. 

COLUMBUS  AND  THE    FINDING    OF  THE 
NEW  WORLD. 

Northwestern  Christian  Advocate,  October  19, 
1892. 

36 


—THE  SAME. 

i6o;   pp.    19.     Privately  printed.     Chicago, 

1892. 

THE    UNIVERSITY    LIBRARY    AND    THE 

UNIVERSITY    CURRICULUM.      Pm   BETA 

Kappa  Address  Northwestern  University, 

June  13,  1893. 

120;   pp    55.     Chicago,   Fleming  H.  Revell 
Company,  1894. 

BOOK  REVIEWS  AND  OTHER  ARTICLES 

Contributed  to  "  The  Dial,"  Chicago. 

In  Volume  I,  1880-81. 
Hildreth's  History  of  the  United  States. 

p.  I. 
Dexter's   History    of    Congregationalism. 

p.  69. 
Winsor's  Memorial  History  of  Boston,  p.  152. 
Father  Louis  Hennepin,    p.  253. 

In  Volume  II,  1881-82. 
Lodge's  History  of  the  English  Colonies  in 

America,    p.  32. 
The  Yorktown  Campaign,  1781.    p.  iii. 
LossiNG's  Popular   CYCLOPi^DiA   of   United 

States  History,    p.  209. 
General  Arthur  St.  Clair,    pp.  227-251. 

In  Volume  III,  1882-83. 
General  Arthur  St.  Clair  and  the  Ordi- 
nance of  1787.    p.  13. 

37 


Doyle's  English  Colonies  in  America,  p.  221. 
McMaster's  History  of  the  United  States; 
Volume  I.    p.  271. 

In  Volume  IV,  1883-84. 
The   Quaker   Invasion   of   Massachusetts. 

p.  32. 
German  Mercenaries  in  the  Revolutionary 

War.    p.  305. 

In  Volume  V,  1884-85. 
Thomas  Hutchinson,    p.  54. 
Discoveries  of  America;  The  Lost  Atlantis 

Theory,    p.  97. 
Arnold's  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln,   p.  261. 
The  Pocahontas  Story,    p.  318. 

In  Volume  VI,  1885-86. 
Hosmer's  Samuel  Adams,  p.  65. 
McMaster's  History  of  the  United  States; 

Volume  II.    p.  no. 
WiNSOR's  Narrative  and  Critical  History 

OF  America,    p.  317. 

In  Volume  VII,  1886-87. 

Thomas  Hutchinson,    p.  102, 

Preston's  Documents  Illustrative  of  Amer- 
ican History,    p.  155. 

Adams'  The  Emancipation  of  Massachusetts. 
p.  263. 

In  Volume  VIII,  1887-88. 
The  Cessions  of  the  Western  Lands,  p.  285. 

38 


WiNSOR's  Narrative  and  Critical  History 

OF  America,    p.  337. 

In  Volume  IX,  1888  89. 
WiNSOR's  Narrative  and  Critical  History 

OF  America,    p.  127, 
Hosmer's  Sir  Henry  Vane.    p.  317. 

In  Volume  XI,  1890-91. 
The  Persistence  of  Historic  Myths,    p.  43. 
Economic  and  Social  History  of  New  Eng- 
land,   p.  279. 

In  Volume  XII,  1891-92. 
John  Dickinson,    p.  71. 
Christopher  Columbus,    p.  421. 

In  Volume  XIII,  1892. 
Patrick  Henry,    p.  41. 

In  Volume  XVI,  1894. 
Massachusetts;  An  Object  Lesson,    p.  74. 


ARTICLES  AND  REVIEWS 

Contributed  to  Various  Newspapers. 

[This  list  is  not  complete  but  includes  the  more 
important  articles.] 

The  Mather  Bibliography. 

Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  August  15,  1870. 

Nathaniel  Mather. 

Salem,  Mass.,  Register,  September,  12,  1870. 

39 


George  Bancroft's  Tenth  Volume  of  the 
History  of  the  United  States. 
Chicago   Tribune,    December  i8,    1874.     Re- 
printed in  the  Boston  Transcript,  July  7,  1875. 

Yale  in  1700. 

Chicago  Tribune,  January  10,  1875. 

Palfrey's  New  England;  4th  Volume. 
Chicago  Tribune,  March  25,  1876. 

Early  American  Books. 

Chicago  Times,  May  12,  1876. 

Rutherford  B.  Hayes. 

Chicago  Evening  Journal,  June  17,  1876. 

Sam  Peters  and  His  Blue  Laws. 
Chicago  Tribune,  December  22,  1877. 

Yale  in  Literature. 

Chicago  Times,  January  6,  1878, 

Samuel  Sew  all's  Diary. 

Chicago  Tribune,  November  8,  1879. 

The  Bayard  Family. 

Chicago  Evening  Journal,  July  8,  1880. 

John  Esten  Cooke's  History  of  Virginia. 
Chicago  Tribune,  September  22,  1883. 

Fraudulent  Mather  Letter  on  "  Bagging 
Penn." 
Chicago  Tribune,  May  23,  1870;  June  11,  1870; 
August  10,  1878;  August  17,  1878;  December  9, 
1878. 

40 


Fraudulent  Mather  Letter. 

Chicago  Evening  Post,  May  26,  1891;  January 
13,  1892. 


PAPERS    READ    BEFORE    THE   CINCIN- 
NATI LITERARY  CLUB 

November  16,  1872. 
On  the  Anti-Slavery  Movement  uefore  1800. 

December  21,  1872. 
The  Ordinance  of  1787. 


PAPERS    READ    BEFORE    THE    CHICAGO 
LITERARY  CLUB 

April  19,  1875. 
The  Origin  and  Secret  History  of  the  Or- 
dinance OF  1787. 

May  14,  1877. 
The  Opportunities  of  the   Man  of  Means 
and  Leisure  (Conversation). 

November  11,  1878. 
The  Mission  and   Function   of   Public  Li- 
braries, 

October  6, 1879. 
Inaugural  Address  as   President   of   the 
Club, 

April  17, 1882. 
Witchcraft  (Conversation). 

41 


May  28,  1883. 
Mr.  Bancroft  and  the  Ordinance  of  1787. 

February  4,  1889. 
Some    Matters    Relating    to    the    Early 
Northwest. 

October  24,  1892. 
Columbus  as  a  Discoverer  and  as  a  Man 
(Conversation). 

November  27,  1893. 
Our  Modern  Education  and  the  University 
Curriculum. 

This  paper  was  first  read  before  the  Phi  Beta 
Kappa  Society  at  the  Northwestern  University, 
June  13,  1893,  and  was  afterward  (1894)  published 
under  the  title  of  The  University  Library 
and  the  University  Curriculum. 


42 


